Greg Oden
|+ colspan="2" style="text-align: center; font-size: 130%; color:#000000; background-color:#ffffff"| |- | colspan="2" style="vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"| Oden playing for the Trail Blazers. |- Free agent |- ! style="vertical-align: top;"|Position |Center |- ! style="vertical-align: top;"|League |NBA |- Personal information |- ! style="vertical-align: top;"|Born | Buffalo,_New_York Buffalo, New York] |- ! style="vertical-align: top;"|Nationality ||American |- ! style="vertical-align: top;"|Listed height | 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) |- ! style="vertical-align: top;"|Listed weight | 273 lbs (129 kg) |- Career information |- ! style="vertical-align: top;"|High school | Lawrence North (Indianapolis, Indiana) |- ! style="vertical-align: top;"|NBA Draft | 2007 / Round: 1 / Pick: 1st |- | colspan="2" style="vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|Selected by the Portland Trail Blazers |- ! style="vertical-align: top;"|Pro career | 2007-present ( |1|1}} years) |- Career history''' |- |2007-2013 |Portland Trail Blazers |- |2013-2014 |Miami Heat |- |2015-2016 |Jiangsu Dragons |- Career highlights and awards |- | colspan="2" style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"| *Consensus NCAA All-American First Team (2007) *Naismith Prep Player of the Year (2006) *Indiana Mr. Basketball (2006) |} Gregory Wayne Oden (born January 22, 1988) is an American professional basketball player who plays at Center who currently is a Free agent of the NBA He attended Ohio State University, was drafted 1st Overall in the 2007 NBA Draft. Oden played basketball for Ohio State University for one season, during which the team was the Big Ten Champion and the tournament runner-up in the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship. On June 28, 2007, Oden was selected first overall in the 2007 NBA Draft by the Trail Blazers. He underwent microfracture knee surgery in September 2007, and missed the entire 2007–08 NBA season as a result. He has recovered well and made his NBA debut on Opening Night 2008. He was immediately injured in the first quarter and missed 2 weeks worth of playing time. Oden is currently the "Team Oden" spokesperson for Oregon Mentors, promoting mentoring for kids. Early years Oden was born in Buffalo, New York, and moved with his family to Terre Haute, Indiana at the age of nine. He was named the 2006 Indiana Mr. Basketball. He was also on the McDonald's All-American Team and played in the All-American game. Oden was named Parade's High School Co-Player of the Year 2005 (along with Monta Ellis) and 2005 National Boys Basketball Player of the Year, becoming the first junior since LeBron James to be named such. While in high school, Oden was named the PARADE 's High School Player of the Year and the Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the Year two years in a row, in 2005 and 2006. Oden attended Lawrence North High School in Indianapolis, Indiana. He led Lawrence North to three consecutive Indiana Class 4A basketball championships. He graduated in 2006. College On June 29, 2005, Oden and Lawrence North teammate Mike Conley, Jr. announced that they would be attending Ohio State starting with the 2006-07 season. Oden had surgery on his right wrist on June 16, 2006, in Indianapolis to repair a ligament injury that occurred late in his senior high school season. As a result, he sat on the bench during the beginning of the 2006-07 season with Ohio State, during which his team was ranked as high as first before losing to North Carolina. He made his college debut on December 2, 2006, against Valparaiso, coming off the bench. He finished the game with 14 points, 10 rebounds and 5 blocks. In December of that year, Phoenix Suns General Manager Steve Kerr described him as a "once-in-a-decade player". The Big Ten honored Oden with Player of the Week, along with Wisconsin's Alando Tucker, on January 29, 2007. In the previous week he had averaged 18 points and 11.5 rebounds. On March 6, 2007, Oden was named First Team All-Big Ten as well being voted the conference's Defensive Player of the Year. Oden fouled out for the first time in his college career against Xavier in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, and was bothered by foul trouble throughout the tournament. In the Sweet Sixteen, Oden blocked a potential game-winning shot in the final seconds against Tennessee to preserve an 85-84 victory, and went on to lead Ohio State past Memphis and Georgetown to advance to the 2007 National Championship. In the title game, Oden scored 25 points, and had 12 rebounds and 4 blocked shots in a losing effort against the Florida Gators. On March 26, 2007, Oden, along with Kevin Durant, Arron Afflalo, Alando Tucker, and Acie Law IV, was named to the Associated Press All-American Team. Oden and Durant were the first freshmen voted to the All-American First Team since 1990 and the third and fourth overall. NBA career Draft On April 20, Oden announced that he would be entering the 2007 NBA Draft. On June 28, 2007, he was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers with the #1 overall pick. Two of his Ohio State teammates were also chosen in the first round: Mike Conley, Jr. at #4, and Daequan Cook at #21. To begin his Trail Blazers career, Oden chose the uniform number 52. On July 1, before his first NBA practice, Oden was signed to a contract which provided for two guaranteed seasons and team options for third and fourth seasons. 2007-08 season ]] On September 14, 2007, Oden had microfracture surgery on his ailing right knee. He missed the entire season. Oden's progress was recorded on the Trail Blazers' website and his blog. 2008–09 season Although picked first overall in the 2007 NBA Draft, Oden is classified as a rookie for the 2008-09 season because of the knee injury. Rookie of the Year Candidates, 2008-09 season, ESPN.com Entering the 2008–09 season he is listed at 250 lbs, but according to Blazers' trainer Jay Jensen he weighed about 290 lbs in July. Oden left the game after playing thirteen minutes in his NBA debut against the Lakers with a foot injury after being held scoreless. He returned after missing two weeks on November 12, 2008, and scored his first NBA points in the first quarter against the Miami Heat. On January 19, 2009, Oden went for a career-high 24 points while also grabbing 15 boards in a 102-85 win against the Milwaukee Bucks. Category:National Basketball Association players Category:American basketball players Category:Centers Category:Ohio State Alumni Category:Born in 1988 Category:Portland Trail Blazers players Category:Players who wear/wore number 52 Category:Miami Heat players Category:Players who wear/wore number 20 Category:Portland Trail Blazers draft picks